Paramount Is Bringing ‘Sonic The Hedgehog’ To The Big Screen

Neal H. Moritz and Tim Miller are teaming up to bring everyone’s favorite supercharged hedgehog to the big screen!

Paramount Pictures has won the movie rights to ‘Sonic the Hedgehog,’ the popular SEGA video game franchise. Moritz, whose company, Original Film, recently signed an upcoming first look deal with Paramount, will produce the project, which will head to the studio after Sony Entertainment put the project into turnaround.

Much of the original Sony team that was developing it remains: In addition to Moritz, ‘Deadpool’ director Tim Miller is executive producing, while his longtime Blur Studio collaborator Jeff Fowler will make his feature directorial debut on the film. Also executive producing is Toby Ascher, while Dmitri Johnson and Dan Jevons will serve as co-producers.

‘Sonic the Hedgehog’ centers on Sonic and his friends, such as Tails (Mr. Miles Tails Prower, if you’re nasty) and Knuckles, who both run around collecting items and points as they attempt to foil the global domination plans of the diabolical Doctor Eggman Robotnik.

The game was originally released by SEGA in 1991, with the Sonic quickly becoming one of the world’s biggest gaming icons. More than 360 million copies have been sold on various platforms, including both packaged and digital games.

Paramount plans on creating a spectacle that will blend live action and CGI animation as it brings Sonic and friends to the big screen for the first time. Sounds intense! But, as Sonic himself would say:

“An adventure is no fun if it’s too easy!”

Fowler is no stranger to making films centered around animal-like creatures. He previously wrote and directed the animal-centric ‘Gopher Broke,’ the 2005 Academy Award-nominated animated short that Miller executive produced.

While an official release date is not yet known, the film is expected to race into theaters sometime in 2019!